Carton structure



R. B. BOYLE May 16, 1939.

CARTON STRUCTURE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1' Filed Nov. 11, 1937 INVENTOR. Roerzfl flayZe BY q ATTORNEY.

R. B. BOYLE May 16, 1939.

CARTON STRUCTURE Fild Nov. 11, 19:57

iiiuuuiuli nu in u I!! 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented May 16, 1939 UNITED STATES- CARTON STRUCTURE Robert B. Boyle, Chicago, Ill., assignor, by mesne assignments, to Consolidated Carton, Inc., Chlcago, Ill.,, a corporation of Illinois Application November 11, 1937, Serial NIL-174,044

4 Claims.

A particular object of the invention is to provide such a carton having positive locking means between said partitions and a bottom of the carton.

an egg carton embodying the invention, but it is to be understood that a number of features of construction are old and well known, and may be modified or substituted in other cartons also embodying the invention as disclosed or as modified within the scope of the appended claims. In the drawings:

Fig. 1 represents a blank which is cut and scored to be folded and glued to form a flat-folds.- ble egg carton.

Fig. 2 represents a relatively rigid partition to divide the carton longitudinally.

3 represents a fragmentary view of the bottom of the carton looking upwardly at the carton of Fig. 5.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary vertical longitudinal section of the carton taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 6, showing the interlocked partition and bottom.

Fig. 5 is -a perspective view of the as yet unfilled carton resulting from setting up the blank of Fig.

35 1 with two partitions of Fig. 2. v

' Fig. 6 is a transverse longitudinal section of the carton of Fig. 5 on the line 5-3 thereof, showing the suspension of the bottom by the partitions.

o A piece of stock is cut and stored to .provide a flat blank as shown in Fig. 1. It is divided into areas or panels for particular parts of the box as follows: locking flap l0, cover l2, rear longitudinal side wall l4, bottom sections I5, i8, 20 and 22,

45 front longitudinal side wall 24, cross-wall-forming I panel 26, and glue-strip 23. There are intervening scored lines designated by numerals ll, l3, l5, l1, l9, 2|, 23, and 21.

The general arrangement of these parts, con- 50 sidering the bottom sections Hi to 22 inclusive broadly as a bottom wall is well known and is subject to various well known modifications. The

particular form is representative only. The blank is such that upon folding the glue strip 28 is ad- 5 hesively united to the interior of back-wall M, at

ing the partition edges 53 above the bottom edges such a zone that the scored lines I5, 23, 25 and 21 form a parallelogram permitting flat-folding of the carton. r

The cross-wall panel 26 is cut in a well known way to provide down-foldable flaps, or cross- 5 walls, or transverse partitions, designated 30, 3|, 32, 33, and 34, each with a triangular or similar tab at scored line 25 and tab 35 at scored line 21, and a scored hinging line 31 between each flap and its tab 35, and a similar scored hinglngline 10 38 between each flap and tab 35. This structure of the flaps is also well known and is merely rep-,

- resentative of the known variations of such struc- In the accompanying drawings there is shown ture.

A well known locking structure for locking flap 13 I0 is also employed, consisting of tongues 40 with notches 4| which engage under several of the tabs 35.

The down-foldable flaps divide the carton into cells. Ordinarily, such structures are provided with one longitudinal partition, and the ,crosswalls are more numerous to form egg cartonsv with six cells lengthwise and two cells cross-wise.

In the box of the drawings, there are two such longitudinal partitions and fewer cross-walls to provide a box having .four cells lengthwise, and three cells crosswise. Certain parts of the box areaccordingly constructed to give a rigid box.

a locked structure, and a cushioned bottom.

The cross-walls 30 to 34 are each provided with so two slots or recesses 43 to receive the cross-partltions in an intersecting relationship. In line with the two rows of such recesses, the bottom is provided with elongated slots 44 and 45 of slightly different structures. Slot 44 is longer in open area 85 than slot 45, but s1ot-45 has a cut 43 which makes slot -45 as long as and preferably longer than slot 44 when the cut is used as an extension of the slot. The cut 46 is at one side ofthe slot and is located laterally of theultimate position of a 40 longitudinal partition to be placed over it. This forms a tab 41 at the end of slot 45 to shorten it. The tab presents an edge 43 across the end of the shortened slot. Tab 41 may flex on the dottedline designated 49 (Fig. 3), as will be clear hereinafter, and as shown in flexed position in the upper line of slotsin Fig. 3.

The longitudinal partition is shown in Fig. 2 and is designated 50, being used in duplicate. It has slots or recesses 52 spaced to interlock with the slots or recesses 43 in the cross-walls, brings of the carton, but in contact with or close to the bottom of the carton which flexes or folds upwardly to provide a raised or suspended bottom. 55

Fig. 3, and then be'moved longitudinally to bring the bottoms of notches 55 into engagement with the ends of the slots, as shown in the lower row of Fig. 3. At the ends of the partitions there are fingers designated 55 and 51 which hold the end gram described becomes rectangular.

' slot.

ing a fixed edge, rather When the carton is assembled, it is taken from fiat-folded form and opened so that the parallelo- A partition is held so that finger 51 by the adjacent recess 52 is locked. into one of the recesses 43 exposed at the end flap 34, In this position the cross-walls are in the plane of their panel 26 and the partition is up-standing. The partition is r then rolled down to turn the 'engaged end flap 34 on its hinging lines 31 and 38. As it moves the tongues 54 in succession come into contact with and turn down the other flaps 33, 32, 3| and 30 and the partition interlocks with each one. The

bottom is moved up,'folding on its scored lines 2| refrigerator, may be such as to longitudinal partitions in a direction to disengage;

'cross walls. in many positions locked against this and IT, to bring the slots 44 and 45 into position to receive the tongues 54. In doing this the tongues at slots 45 are forced to move into the cut 46 so that the tongue will readily enter the longer Tab 41 is thus slightly flexed. Then the longitudinal partition 50 is moved to bring the notch into engagement with the opposite end of the slot. The tongue then leaves the cut 45 and moves laterally in the slot to its normal position laterally of the cut 46," so that it strikes the edge 48 of the tab 41 to hold the partition sumciently from longitudinal movement to prevent disengagement of the notch 55. Although the locking tab 41 is illustrated as located at the end. of the slot opposite the position of the notch 55, it may be moved to the other end. So moved the notch will engage the tab 47. The preferred and illustrated arrangement makes a stronger and surer structure because the notch is then engagthan an edge of a. movable tab It will be observed that the bottom sections 16 and 22 form inclined bottoms for the side rows 01' egg cells and these provide a cushion for the eggs. The two narrower sections l8 and 2|! will normally remain in a horizontal plane, until eggs are placed in the middle row, when the weight thereof bends the plane at the scored line l9 into a V-shaped bottom elevated from the bottom edges of the carton at lines l5 and 23.

Because the bottom of the carton is thus elevated, the tongues 54 are exposed beneath the bottom as projections. The pressure of eggs, for example egg E in Fig. 6, laterally against the of handling, for it oil! a shelf in a tend to move the example as in tilting it to slide the notches 55., Unless these partitions are so might be disengaged pushed upwardly, causing the bottom to drop away from its suspension and to buckle or sag with a danger that eggs will drop out. This-is far more likely to happen where there are three rows of eggs, than where there are two rows, because in the present carton the span of the bottom is greater, audit is movement, the partitions and accidentally rise or be made to be flexed into a non--v improved means for locking the parts into practically an irreversible structure when containing eggs. The eggs hold the partitions 50 in their normal positions out of line with the cut 46 into which a tongue 54 must be moved to unlock the partition 50. The lateral location of the cut 46 relative to the normal position of the partition 50 is therefore an important part'of the structure for the purposes intended.

Although the tab 41 has been described as movable, it is to be understood that motion is forced only when the cut 46 is of width narrower than the thickness of the tongue 54 -on the longitudinal partition 50. By making the cut as wide or wider stood that the locking means in slot 45 or its equivalent may be entirely dispensed with, in a carton having a bottom with two lines of suspension between the longitudinal sides.

I claim:

1. A carton for eggs and the like comprising a cover, bottom, front and rear longitudinal side walls, and an interior panel across the top of the carton cut and scored to provide a series of downfoldable flaps which in down-folded position form parallel transverse partitions in the carton, and a plurality of separate insertable longitudinal partitions adapted to intersect said transverse partitions in parallel spaced longitudinal-positions to divide the'carton into cells, each of said longitudinal partitions having notched tongues thereon arranged tobe received in slots formed in the bottom and to be longitudinally movable in said slots to bring the notches into locking engagement with the ends of the slots, at least one of said slots for each partition having a movpartitions adapted to intersect said transverse partitions in parallel spaced longitudinal posiable locking tab at the end of the slot which yields to permit insertion of the tongue and which tions to divide the carton into cells, each of said longitudinal partitions having notched tongues thereon arranged to be received in slots formed in the bottom and to be longitudinally movable in said slots to bring the notches into locking engagement with the ends-of the slots, at least one of said slots for each partition having a mov-' able locking tab at the end of the slot which yields to permit insertion of the tongue and which moves against the tongue to prevent disengagement of the notch, the bottom of the carton being raised above the front and rear edge of the bottom at each longitudinal partition by the suspendparallel transverse partitions in the carton, and a v plurality of separate insertable longitudinal partitions adapted to intersect said transverse partitions in parallel spaced longitudinal positions to divide the carton into cells, each of said longitudinal-partitions having notched tongues thereon arranged to be received in slots formed in the bottom and to be longitudinally movable in said slots to bring the notches into locking engagement with the ends of the slots, the bottom, the interior panel and the side walls being united into a flatfoldable parallelogram structure.

4. A carton for eggs and the like comprising a the like comprising a cover, bottom, front and rear longitudinal side walls, and an interior panel across, the top of the carton cut and scored to provide a series of down-foldable flaps which in down-folded position form parallel transverse partitions in the carton, and a plurality of separate insertable longitudinal partitions adapted to intersect said transverse partitions in parallel spaced longitudinal positions to divide the carton into cells, each of said longitudinal partitions having notched tongues thereon arranged to be received in slots formed in the bottom and to be longitudinally movable in said slots to bring the notches into locking engagement with the ends of the slots, the bottom of the carton being raised above the front and rear edges of the bottom at each longitudinal partition by the suspending action of said notches, and being adapted to slope downwardly from each such partition particularly when the cells are weighted whereby to provide a cushion bottom for eggs or the like in said cells, the bottom, the interior panel and the side walls being united into a flat-foldable parallelogram structure.

" ROBERT B. BOYLE. 

